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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28657851">Can I Be Him?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/therealtsumtsum/pseuds/therealtsumtsum'>therealtsumtsum</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Blind Date, Getting Together, M/M, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, Tsukishima Kei is Bad at Feelings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 03:40:50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,795</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28657851</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/therealtsumtsum/pseuds/therealtsumtsum</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
      <p>Secret Santa (Uploaded Late Because I'm an Asshole :p)</p>
    </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>48</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Can I Be Him?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Secret Santa (Uploaded Late Because I'm an Asshole :p)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The front door to the apartment swung open causing three heads to turn towards the source of the sound. Disheveled blond hair and wire-rimmed glasses came into view, followed closely by a clouded expression that to the untrained eye could be considered a glower, but to Yamaguchi it was Tsukishima’s version of a confused grimace. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What are they doing here again?” The blond asked, shrugging off his coat and hanging it on the coat rack as the door shut itself behind him. “Did one of you set the stove on fire again?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey!” Hinata pouted and crossed his arms petulantly, speaking through pursed lips. “I only did that </span>
  <em>
    <span>once</span>
  </em>
  <span> and it wasn’t even my fault!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Whose fault was it then?” Kageyama spoke up then, his face incredulous as Hinata tried to pass the blame onto something other than his lack of an attention span. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Noodles take forever to soften up! I got bored! It’s not my fault!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That sounds like the definition of your fault, though.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima shook his head and darted his eyes over to the third person on the couch, his best friend and roommate Yamaguchi, giving him a small smile and a roll of his eyes at their friends’ antics. Over the course of their years in high school, the four of them had grown a lot closer than realistically any of them had expected. They all shared a varying level of passion for volleyball, combined with the amount of time that they spent together both in and out of school, and by the end of their high school careers they had all come to the decision to attend the same university. Tsukishima couldn’t quite figure out if he was lucky when it came to their housing options. He had the choice of rooming in a dorm and being paired with a random classmate, or living in an off-campus apartment with the person of his choosing. It had seemed like a given that he would get an apartment with Yamaguchi, seeing as the two had been nearly inseparable since they were children. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But now after living with him for over a year, Tsukishima realized what a terrible, awful, no-good mistake it had been. Being able to see Yamaguchi’s smile whenever he wanted, the flush on his cheeks when he had just a bit too much to drink, the haphazard tufts of hair that would stick up when he would oversleep. All the little things that Tsukishima never realized he was missing when they were living separately quickly added up to become an overwhelming presence in his heart, making him come to the realization that he wanted Yamaguchi as more than just a friend. That in and of itself was bad enough, but having to watch his best friend and the apparent love of his life go out on Saturday nights with men he’d met on dating apps caused him more pain and discomfort than he’d like to admit. So he squashed those feelings, so deep down in his heart that if he ignored them for long enough he occasionally forgot that they were there. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After shucking his shoes off in the front entryway and grabbing himself a water bottle from the refrigerator, Tsukishima joined the three men in his living room, sitting himself in the empty lounge chair. Kageyama and Hinata were still arguing over who did in fact </span>
  <em>
    <span>start</span>
  </em>
  <span> the fire on their stove a few months prior, and Yamaguchi was glaring at his phone balancing on his knee. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well-” Tsukishima spoke up then, stopping their bickering before it became more physical -- as it usually did in these situations -- and asked again. “Why are you two here if not to steal some of our food?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I swear to fucking God, I have the worst taste in men!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>An outburst like this wasn’t uncommon when it came to their friend group, especially with the dumbass duo, but coming from Yamaguchi like it did was something new. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Tadashi had another bad date last night,” Hinata explained, turning to once again face the man in question. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s, like, the third bad one in a row! What am I doing wrong?” Yamaguchi whined, burying his face in his hands. “Everything was going really smoothly at dinner, and he dropped me back off here like it was no problem. But then he texted me early this morning bitching because I didn’t put out!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not anything you did wrong, that’s that guy being a dickhole,” Kageyama interjected, and far be it for Tsukishima to agree with him on anything, but that was a dickhole move. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The guy before that said that I smelled </span>
  <em>
    <span>too much</span>
  </em>
  <span> like coconut, and dumped me off back here like he was offended,” Yamaguchi continued, counting them off on his fingers. “And the guy before that took me to Starbucks because he’d forgotten my name and wanted me to give it to the barista.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oof,” Hinata cringed and rubbed at his nose. “Geez, Tadashi, where do you find these guys, the gas station? They all sound awful!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Usually online or somewhere on campus. They all start off good, I don’t know what happens on the dates that brings out the worst in them.” Yamaguchi groaned in defeat, rubbing at his temples. “I’m sick of dating, maybe I’ll just grow old and have a bunch’a cats and collect old newspapers.”</span>
  <span></span>
    <br/>
  
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“Yeah, because that’s not over-dramatic at all,” Tsukishima mused, sipping on his water and earning a glare from Yamaguchi. “Tadashi, you’re not even twenty yet. What’s the rush?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi’s eyes widened slightly, and if Tsukishima hadn’t known the man for as long as he did, he probably wouldn’t have noticed. The only problem is he didn’t know </span>
  <em>
    <span>why</span>
  </em>
  <span> Yamaguchi had made such an expression, and why he tried to hide it from Tsukishima of all people. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s no rush, really, I guess…” Yamaguchi sighed, looking between the three of his friends with a look of defeat. “I guess I am just being over-dramatic, huh? I’m sorry guys.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima let out a soft breath that he hadn’t known he’d been holding. Maybe Yamaguchi will take a break from dating, giving Tsukishima plenty of time to work on either overcoming his more-than-a-friend feelings, or embracing them and seeing where that could take him. Maybe Yamaguchi will come to the realization that he likes Tsukishima too, and they could pursue something together. Maybe--</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, you know, I think I have someone you may like. And they’re definitely not an asshole,” Hinata spoke up, interrupting Tsukishima’s train of thought. “He’s kind of goofy, but I mean you are too, Tadashi.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well you can be, I mean,” Hinata laughed, pulling out his phone. “C’mon, what do you think? I can set you up for a date next Friday night!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, wait a minute,” Kagyeama interjected. “Why do </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> get to pick somebody for Tadashi? Maybe I have someone in mind that I think he’d like.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No offense Tobio, but you don’t know Tadashi like I do,” Hinata frowned, turning back towards Kageyama with that challenging glint in his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Excuse me</span>
  </em>
  <span>? We met him at the same time, dumbass.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but I spend more time with him!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima once again drowned out the duo’s bickering in lieu of moving his attention over to Yamaguchi, who was staring at some unknown point on the living room floor. Tsukishima could tell when Yamaguchi was deep in thought because his gaze would become unfocused and drop to a spot on the floor, and he would unknowingly play with his fingers in his lap. It usually only happened when Yamaguchi was dealing with a dilemma, school or otherwise, and he’d gotten so used to bottling up his problems. But since befriending Tsukishima, both of them had learned to open up to one another and talk through any problem they were going through instead of letting it eat at them. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What was Yamaguchi going through that he felt he couldn’t share with Tsukishima?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t know the first thing about dating, Tobio!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ve been together for three years, stupid!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Guys</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Yamaguchi exclaimed, rubbing his temples. “Why don’t I go out with Shouyou’s guy on Friday, and then Tobio’s guy on Saturday? Is that a good compromise for everybody?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As much as Tsukishima wanted to say no, he stayed silent, listening as his friends made date plans for the following weekend. And he felt the crack in his heart grow larger. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The week leading up to the dates was just like any other. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi had classes during the days and spent their nights together either studying in the library or lounging around their apartment. It was weeks like these especially that made Tsukishima realize just how deeply he’d fallen for his best friend. No matter what they were doing, no matter how mundane or boring the task at hand, it became infinitely better just having Yamaguchi at his side. Even the things that Tsukishima would ordinarily find irritating if performed by another person -- like tapping a pencil against a desk or bouncing their leg under the table -- all became endearing when Yamaguchi was the one doing it. It could just be his heart looking for more reasons to fall even harder for Yamaguchi, but Tsukishima couldn’t seem to help himself. As Friday neared, Tsukishima was getting more and more restless at the thought of the upcoming dates. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And he wasn’t alone. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, how do I look?” Yamaguchi spun in a lazy circle in front of Tsukishima, who was laid out on the sofa with a book in hand. When the blond finally looked up at him, Yamaguchi gave an award-winning smile to bring his outfit all together, earning a half-hearted shrug and a quick once-over. Coming from Tsukishima, however, Yamaguchi knew that that was a more positive reaction. “Alright perfect. Lev’s gonna be here any minute to pick me up.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Lev? Where have I heard that name before?” Tsukishima mused, furrowing his brows.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi stuck his phone and wallet in his pockets, checking to make sure he had everything before he spoke up again. “I think we might have met him unofficially once or twice. He’s been Shou’s friend for about a year now, so we might have seen him in passing or something. Shou’s really excited, though. He thinks we’ll get along really well.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t imagine anybody not getting along with you, Tadashi. You’re easygoing and kind.” Tsukishima spoke like it was obvious, but Yamaguchi found himself blushing at the compliments. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh… Wow, thanks Tsukki.” Yamaguchi smiled and plopped down next to the blond on the couch, giving him a brief side-hug. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, no problem. Now get out of here, go have fun.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi gave himself another quick glance in the bathroom mirror before heading out the apartment door, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he waited for Lev’s text notifying of his arrival. Going on </span>
  <em>
    <span>another</span>
  </em>
  <span> date hadn’t really been that appealing to Yamaguchi, but it had become something of a necessity for him over the past year or so. He never would have imagined how difficult living with Tsukishima would be given that he’d been in love with him since their first year of high school. It wasn’t a fast-paced, overwhelming sort of love, but one that snuck up on him out of nowhere. Yamaguchi had been so focused on the friendship aspect of their relationship that one day -- specifically the day Tsukishima called out sick from school -- Yamaguchi came to the quick realization that the blond had dug a neat little hole in his heart. Tsukishima was the first person that Yamaguchi would go to in search of comfort or support, someone he knew he could trust no matter the issue at hand. Why or when those feelings had developed beyond strictly platonic Yamaguchi couldn’t pinpoint, but nevertheless they were there. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And he might have been able to quash them if they weren’t so blatantly apparent. But Yamaguchi was deathly terrified of losing someone he had grown so accustomed to throughout his life, and so he elected to ignore them as best as he could and focus his romantic attentions elsewhere in the hopes that his sentiments would eventually dissipate. Before he could drown deeper into his own thoughts, however, Yamaguchi’s phone </span>
  <em>
    <span>pinged</span>
  </em>
  <span> alerting him to Lev’s arrival. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was a couple hours later before Yamaguchi was slipping back into the apartment. It was much darker than how he’d started the night, and he was worried he might wake Tsukishima at this hour. As quietly as he could, he locked the door and shucked off his shoes, tiptoeing into the kitchen for a drink before almost dropping the glass in surprise at hearing Tsukishima call his name from the living room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Tsukki, you scared the bejesus outta me!” He admonished, clutching at his heart and taking a few steadying breaths. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re so dramatic, I literally just said your name,” Tsukishima chuckled, leaning his head backwards over the arm of the couch, looking at Yamaguchi upside down. “How’d the date go?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well…” Yamaguchi trailed off, electing to take a sip of his glass of water and clearing his throat instead of answering right away. “I guess it would have gone okay if he wasn’t so clearly in love with one of his classmates.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima’s eyes widened before he let out a soft snort. “Excuse me?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He spent the whole night going on and on about a friend of his from class! An upperclassman, but he was starry-eyed every time his name slipped out of his mouth. ‘Yaku this, Yaku that.’ Blah blah blah. So finally I just said that he needed to tell him the truth. We spent the rest of the night going over what he was going to say when he confessed.” Yamaguchi admitted, rubbing his eyes as the weight of the night seemed to start to weigh heavier on him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The blond burst into a quiet fit of laughter, holding onto his stomach and curling his legs up on the couch. If Yamaguchi wasn’t so frustrated, he would have been infatuated with the sound. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ugh, it’s not funny Tsukki!” Yamaguchi stomped his foot petulantly and crossed his arms. He knew he looked childish but at the moment he didn’t care. “No matter what I do, nothing works. What’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>wrong</span>
  </em>
  <span> with me?” He was lucky that he chose just vague enough words to apply to the current dilemma. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey.” Tsukishima sat up at that, walking into the kitchen and leaning against the counter beside Yamaguchi, a serious expression replacing the humor-filled one on his face. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with you, Tadashi. I meant what I said earlier, you know? You’re so kind and gentle-hearted, and you are one of the most supportive people I’ve ever met. Anybody would be lucky to have you in their life, romantic or otherwise, and if they don’t have enough brain cells to see that then they don’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>deserve</span>
  </em>
  <span> you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi felt tears well up in his eyes as Tsukishima spoke. “Do you really mean that, Tsukki?” His voice was small, and although he already knew the answer to the question, he felt the need to hear the confirmation out loud. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course I mean it, Tadashi. Of all the things I am, do you consider me a liar?” He tried to lighten the mood with a small, teasing smile, and it worked. Yamaguchi chuckled softly, once again rubbing at his eyes. “Hey, listen. I know you have another date planned for tomorrow night, but do you wanna grab lunch with me or something on Sunday? You know, to kind of unwind after such a stressful weekend.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If Yamaguchi had even a shred of common sense left, he would have ensured that he didn’t get his hopes up at the suggestion. But seeing that his heart and brain were both stupid and in love, he felt a small swoop in his stomach at the mention of anything similar to a </span>
  <em>
    <span>date</span>
  </em>
  <span> with Tsukishima.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, Tsukki, that sounds nice. I’d love to.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The following day was another lazy day, as their Saturdays tend to turn out to be. It had become somewhat of a routine for Tsukishima and Yamaguchi to spend their Saturdays cleaning up around their apartment or getting ahead in their studies. This weekend was no different, with their morning spent deep-cleaning the shared bathroom before doing some light reading from their textbooks. The main difference now was that Yamaguchi ducked out earlier than usual to start showering and prepping for his date that evening. Kageyama had been vague about the person the previous week, so Yamaguchi was especially nervous about going into it blind. While Yamaguchi was off in his bedroom silently panicking about his unknown date for the evening, Tsukishima got a phone call. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you want?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jeez Tsukki, you think after all these years you’d answer the phone a little bit more personably.” The statement was clearly said in a teasing manner, but Kageyama’s voice was so deadpan that it fell flat. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Let me try again. Hello Tobio, what do you want?” Tsukishima could almost hear the roll of his eyes on the other end of the line. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Listen, do you wanna go to dinner with me and Shou tonight?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And be third wheel to whatever it is that you two have going on? I think I’ll pass.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“C’mon! It won’t be anything like that, I promise. Besides, you’re not gonna be doing anything anyway. Tadashi will be out, and I know you would just wait around until he got home anyway.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima cringed at the fact that Kageyama was absolutely right. “Fuck. Fine. What time?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi left before Tsukishima did, asking for yet another once-over before he excused himself. The date in question was meeting him at some restaurant, so Tsukishima sat on the couch and watched him go, silently cursing himself for wanting to say something to stop him but not doing so. Not too long afterwards, Tsukishima jogged out to Kageyama’s car, sliding into the backseat and droning out the bickering couple in the front. All he could think about was this date going well for Yamaguchi and losing his chance before he really even seized it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They pull up and park at some restaurant Tsukishima’s never heard of, and he walked stiffly behind Hinata and Kageyama as they made their way inside. Taking a cursory glance around, it was a nicer place, with tablecloths and candles on each table. He scowled at the idea of having a romantic dinner with the dumbass duo, only for his eyes to catch someone familiar at one of the tables. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Tadashi?” He blurted out, louder than he intended, catching the attention of the man in question. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Tsukki? What are you guys doing here?” Yamaguchi asked, setting his napkin on the table and standing up, a confused look plastered on his face. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I-I...” Tsukishima shook his head, taking a step back. He couldn’t watch Yamaguchi on a date with somebody else. It was bad enough to hear about them later, but to see it in action... “Tobio, can we eat somewhere else?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Um, no? Tadashi is waiting on you, get over there.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima’s eyes widened as he snapped his head over to Kageyama, his face as straight as ever with only a hint of mirth in his eyes. “You- What?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I see the way you look at him just like how I see the way he looks at you. Shou says I’m not good at the relationship stuff, which I hate to admit is true, but I’ve gotten a lot better at reading people.” He spoke simply, shrugging a shoulder like he hadn’t just uprooted all of Tsukishima’s work over the past couple years. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“B-But...” Tsukishima looked back over at Yamaguchi, who was just as wide-eyed, his mouth dropped into a small ‘o’. “Tadashi...”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Stay.” Yamaguchi straightened up, fiddling with his fingers as if he were anxious, but his face remained determined. “If what he said is true on your end, then stay. Please, Kei.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Their eyes met, and for the first time in years Tsukishima was able to see something he hadn’t before. There was a certain softness in Yamaguchi’s gaze, a small smile playing on his lips like he knew something that Tsukishima didn’t. Tsukishima was bewitched, and he was like a man possessed as he walked over to Yamaguchi’s table, closing the distance between them without so much as a word or a glance back at their other two friends. Distantly, he could hear Kageyama having to drag Hinata out of the restaurant ‘in the name of privacy’, but all his attention was on the man across from him as they settled into the seats at the table. </span>
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<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Tsukki... I haven’t been fully honest with you lately,” Yamaguchi started, picking at the side of the menu with his nail and tapping a finger on the opposite hand against the table. “Tobio noticed it, I guess, so I suppose I wasn’t as subtle as I wanted to be.” He chuckles. “I’ve liked you for a really long time, Tsukki. I don’t know how long exactly, but it’s like I can’t imagine a time when I didn’t. I, um... I understand if you don’t reciprocate these feelings, and that’s why I’ve been trying to get over you by going on dates, and—“</span>
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<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t get over me!” Tsukishima blurted out the first thing he could coherently put into a sentence, and he internally cringed at himself. “I don’t want you over me, I want you under me.” He paused a second before his face flushed a dark red. “Not like that! I-I mean, eventually maybe, but—“</span>
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<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi laughed, effectively shutting Tsukishima up with a soft clack of his jaw. He’s always loved hearing Yamaguchi laugh, and even now with it being at his expense, Tsukishima was entranced. He chuckled softly, rubbing at his forehead to try and clear any other stupid things he might feel the need to blurt. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So what I’m getting from that is that you like me too?” Yamaguchi asked, wiping a tear from under his eye once the peals of laughter had settled down. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tsukishima nodded, a light blush adorning his cheeks. “I really really like you, Tadashi. More than I’ve liked anything or anyone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yamaguchi slowly, almost hesitantly, slid his hand across the table to take Tsukishima’s, twining their fingers together. It was like everything was moving in slow motion when they both trailed their gaze from their hands back to each other, smiles stretching across their lips. They still had things to discuss and figure out, but that all could be done at their lunch tomorrow. For the night it was just about them, Tadashi and Kei, letting their feelings free for the first time in years.</span>
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